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"Entertainment
rmx" a video remix performance by screaMachine using
the recently developed interactive projection device titled
"V.R.A.G." (video remix artillery gun). The
V.R.A.G., a device created by the artist, combines a data
projector, a custom MIDI controller and a swivel mount.
When connected to a computer, the artist can control the
direction of the projection beam and the video content
by "playing" the video clips like a MIDI musician
plays a synthesizer. Video and audio are output from this
system.
The V.R.A.G. can be installed in any room or outdoor space
with electricity and surfaces to project onto. "Entertainment
rmx" also requires an audio system. The V.R.A.G.
is hung from a pipe structure: two upright stage pipes,
set in bases, connected by a cross beam (standard equipment
available at any staging supplier or plumbers supply).
The V.R.A.G. and computer use about 500 watts of power.
Additional power is necessary for the sound system.
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the projection moves around the room, the focus
of activity moves. By utilizing all surfaces
in the area, the artist redifines the space
and the traditional audience viewing experience. |
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V.R.A.G.
(video remix artillery gun)
hung from ceiling.
The
artist controls both the direction of the
beam and the content of the video.
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"Entertainment
rmx" uses a series of animated video clips made
available for instant playback via the MIDI controller
switches on the V.R.A.G. These clips will be mixed live
by the artist as he projects them around the performance
space.
The artist recorded one hour of channel flipping on
a Monday evening from 6pm to 7pm. This footage was condensed
into a series of 'soundbytes' which were digitally manipulated,
resulting in animated variations on the original footage
combined with scrolling text. The text comprises uninhibited
commentary on the video imagery, from sarcasm to insult
to ridicule. The commentary is not meant to be insightful
(though some of it may be), but reactionary. The artist
is expressing his honest responses as closely as possible
to when he first viewed each clip, revealing his humorously
dismissive viewpoint. As a viewer, the audience member
is made to question the interpretive nature of their
viewing, both at home and during the performance.
The removal of the TV image from the standard set and
presenting it in an oversized, animated, roving projection
lends the content an undeserved grandiosity, thus enhancing
the commentary on the entertainment/advertising/ minimal-attention-span-grabbing
nature of American TV.
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